The present invention relates to the field of construction, and, more particularly, to concrete buildings having a plurality of rooms and related methods of manufacture.
Many buildings are constructed with concrete walls for stability and durability. These properties may be especially desirable for buildings, such as houses, located in areas that are prone to destructive storms or earthquakes, for example. Further, concrete walls are not susceptible to damage from termites or rotting, as wood and other building materials may be.
One well known prior art method for making concrete walls is to use cinder blocks held together with mortar. Because concrete is quite heavy, cinder blocks provide an effective way to distribute this weight over several individually manageable pieces that may be more easily erected in place. Yet, it generally requires numerous laborers and a significant amount of time to assemble an entire building with cinder blocks. Further, skilled masons are typically needed.
Another prior art method for making concrete walls is to pour the walls in place using forms. The forms may be assembled on a foundation or floor, for example, and concrete is then poured into the form and allowed to set. One example of a form for casting concrete walls is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,559,944 to Clough entitled xe2x80x9cMeans for Constructing a Hollowed Wall Concrete Structure.xe2x80x9d The form is collapsible and may be used to construct a hollow wall structure with inner support columns that are insulated from adjacent parallel outer walls to prevent temperature transfer therebetween. Another similar form for making concrete walls is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,618,039 to Hyre entitled xe2x80x9cForm for Casting Concrete Walls.xe2x80x9d This form may be used for casting walls having cavities therein in which pipes or cables may be inserted, for example.
While it is relatively easy to pour large outer walls of a building in place using forms, it may be more difficult to do so in the interior of the building using the collapsible forms of the prior art. This is because there may be limited room available to assemble and disassemble the forms. Also, the assembly time for numerous interior wall forms may be substantial. Thus, houses or other buildings that have xe2x80x9cpoured-in-placexe2x80x9d outer walls typically have interior walls that are constructed with studs (e.g., metal or wood) or cinder blocks, for example. As with cinder block walls, stud walls may similarly require carpenters or other skilled laborers to build, which may lead to increased costs and construction time.
In view of the foregoing background, it is therefore an object of the invention to provide a method and related system for making a poured-in-place building that may be constructed relatively quickly and with a reduced need for skilled laborers.
This and other objects, features, and advantages in accordance with the present invention are provided by a method for making a poured-in-place concrete building including a plurality of rooms. The method may include positioning a plurality of unitary room forms within a periphery of a floor and assembling an outer form around the periphery of the floor. Each unitary room form may include a plurality of rigid panels fixedly connected together as an integral unit along respective adjacent sides thereof defining a closed shape with an open bottom and an open top. Further, the rigid panels may have a draft thereto to facilitate removal of each of the unitary room forms as the integral unit. For example, the draft of each rigid panel may be about one-half inch over a height thereof. The method may also include pouring concrete between the outer form and adjacent unitary room forms and between adjacent unitary room forms to provide outer concrete walls and interior concrete walls, respectively, which define the rooms. Each of the unitary room forms may be removed as the integral unit from adjacent concrete walls. Further, the outer form may be disassembled and a roof may be provided over the rooms.
More specifically, providing the roof may include positioning a plurality of precast concrete panels adjacent upper ends of the outer and interior concrete walls. A concrete layer may be poured over the precast concrete panels.
Each unitary room form may include four generally rectangular rigid panels. Also, each of the rigid panels may include steel, and adjacent steel panels may be welded together prior to use. Removing each of the unitary room forms may include lifting each of the unitary room forms from the outer and interior concrete walls.
Assembling the outer form may include removably assembling a plurality of rigid panels together to define four generally rectangular form portions. Openings may be framed for interior concrete walls prior to assembling the outer form, and reinforcing members may be positioned prior to pouring the concrete.
The invention also relates to a form system for making a poured-in-place concrete building including a plurality of rooms. The system may include a plurality of rigid panels to be assembled together to define an outer form positioned around a periphery of a floor. Each rigid panel may have opposing sides to be removably connected to adjacent panels. Further, the system may include a plurality of unitary room forms to be positioned within the periphery of the floor. Each unitary room form may include a plurality of rigid panels fixedly connected together as an integral unit along respective adjacent sides thereof defining a closed shape having an open bottom and an open top, the rigid panels of each unitary room form having a draft thereto to facilitate removal of each of the unitary room forms as an integral unit after pouring of concrete.
More specifically, each unitary room form may include four generally rectangular rigid panels. Each of the rigid panels may include steel, and adjacent steel panels may be welded together. Further, the draft of each of the rigid panels may be about one-half inch over a height thereof.